Neal
by justanoutlaw
Summary: How the youngest member of the Charming family got his name.


**stark-park prompted: Could you perhaps do a little one shot of a conversation Snowing might've had about naming their son please? Like, them squabbling over names they like, dislike, know someone who had that name who *insert action here*, suggestions from the rest of the family, etc.**

**I am going to ask that if anyone dislikes Neal Cassidy/Baelfire to not read or leave any negative comments about him or the name Snowing chose. I'm not exactly a fan of them naming their baby after a man they barely knew (even though I loved Nealfire), but this is canon.**

**Takes place shortly after David brought the baby to the hospital.**

Snow looked down at the baby in her arms, letting out a content sigh. Her son was back in her arms. She could hold him properly and not worry about a wicked witch stealing him from her. Here he was, her sweet, perfect little boy. All this time she had been convinced that he was a girl, but David had been right this time around. She leaned down and kissed the center of his forehead.

"I bought so many bows," she whispered. "Sorry about that."

David chuckled from his spot in the doorway. Regina had taken Henry and Emma to get something to eat, Hook went to the docks, they were finally alone. "This is why most of what I bought was neutral."

Snow rolled her eyes. "Shush, you were convinced it was a boy."

"True." He walked closer to her. "We could've found out, you know. There are ways in this realm."

Snow shook her head. "The surprise was much more fun. Though, knowing ahead of time with Emma meant I had a name."

"I always meant to ask how you chose that."

"It means universal, whole. That was how I felt when I realized that George's curse on me was broken, like I would finally be whole someday. I finally had you and then we were going to have a baby."

David nodded, carding his fingers through her pixie cut. "It really does fit her."

"That's why I think we need something just as powerful for this little one."

"Does this mean you've given up on Leopold?"

"That went out the window as soon as I learned what he and my mother were really like."

David bit his lip, trying to fight off a frown. "I'm sorry. I know that's not easy, finding out that our parents weren't what we thought."

"It's fine. I mean, it's not…especially not how they treated Cora and Regina, but I'm finding a way to move on." She let out a deep breath. "We could always name him after your dad."

"Robert? No. He was a weak man, I don't want that put on our son."

He moved his fingers to stroke his son's cheek. He was completely bald, but had the brightest blue eyes. Most babies had blue eyes, but he secretly hoped that these would stick. Maybe he'd be the opposite of Emma, with Snow's hair and his eyes. He couldn't wait to see who he'd turn out like, what his personality would be.

"What about Joshua?" He suggested.

Snow instantly shook her head. "I knew an arrogant knight with that name. Silas?"

"Sounds like another name he'd get made fun of over."

She rolled her eyes. "Walter?"

"Do you actually like our child?"

"Hey, Walt Disney is a pretty amazing guy."

"He screwed up our story."

Snow cuddled her son closer. " Right. Not naming our son after him."

David laughed, perching himself on the bed. "Emma suggested Beckham."

"I don't like that. Henry gave me a list of literary ones."

Snow pointed to the piece of paper on the bedside table and David scanned it. He found a few that would be potential middle names, but none really stood out to him as the first name for his little boy.

"You know, Emma's middle name is Ruth, after my mother. Maybe we could name him after someone too."

"Ruth was the reason why Emma could exist in the first place, this little guy too. It'd have to be another hero, someone that without them, we all wouldn't be there."

They were quiet for a few moments, the only sounds coming from the baby. Snow realized it was time for him to eat and adjusted him so he could feed. He had been gone for an hour and she worried it would mess with his schedule, but man he could eat. She wasn't sure that she'd need the lactation consultant that Whale had recommended.

"Neal," David whispered.

Snow tilted her head. "Huh?"

"A hero, the person that without him we wouldn't be here. It's Neal. He sent a message so Hook would go to New York and get Emma. He gave his life so Rumple could tell us who the Wicked Witch was."

Snow slowly nodded, looking down at her son. He did kind of look like a Neal. "He is Emma's ex, though."

"An ex she loved. I know he hurt her, but in the end, he turned out to be a pretty amazing guy."

"His real name was Baelfire. Neal was a name he made up when he came to this world."

"And, in my opinion, for a pretty good reason. I like Baelfire, but it doesn't seem like a name that really fits in this world."

"Neal," Snow whispered. "Neal David?" David smiled a bit and then nodded. He had never saw a child being named after himself, but it did have a nice ring to it. "I like it."

"Really?"

She nodded. "I think we have our name."

"Should we tell Emma? Or Rumple?"

Snow pondered that for a moment. She had come up with Emma's name shortly after finding out that she would one day have a daughter. She had kept it to herself for over a year. This time, David knew and she'd have someone to confide in.

"Nah, let's wait. We're having the naming ceremony at Granny's soon, just like we would back in the Enchanted Forest. It can be our little secret for now."

"Whatever you want." He pecked her lips and then gently took his son back into his arms. "Hello there, Neal," he whispered. "Welcome to the world."


End file.
